Satellite Beach, Fla.-based Satcom Direct launched a new service that allows travellers in business aircraft to use their cellphones seamlessly in flight, through the use of what is effectively an onboard mobile phone cell. All that is required to access the “Global VT” service is a Satcom Direct Router (SDR) in the aircraft, with the latest software update. As of mid-February, some 75 aircraft had SDRs installed and the company expects to have several hundred installed by year-end.

A small group of customers had been testing Global VT on their aircraft since late last year, and the service was officially launched last month at the company’s Connecting with Customers event in San Diego, Calif.

The advantage of Global VT is that “anyone can get hold of you on your mobile,” said Moore. They don’t have to know a separate aircraft number or Iridium number (+87). The service can be always on because the coverage is global and does not require the operator to swap to other networks in different parts of the world. In the cabin it works through an app (currently Apple only but Android is coming soon) using the cabin Wi-Fi provided by the SDR. “The phone sees a normal 3G/4G cell tower,” said Chris Moore, chief commercial officer-international, who added that the system eliminates the problem of the desired recipient on the ground rejecting a passenger’s call because the number is unfamiliar. “It could be the CEO,” said Moore.

“We’ve invested in technology on the ground so you don’t have to work about roaming agreements, so we’re effectively a mobile operator,” said Ken Bantoft, v-p of satcom technologies and development, who was instrumental in designing the SDR and building in the capabilities for Global VT. He expects that the infrastructure investments will give the $35,000 system a shelf life of seven to 10 years.

The company has obtained STCs for a range of aircraft types, and the system is already available for factory fit on Gulfstreams. Moore claimed that putting a normal GSM cell on a Falcon would cost $250,000 and it would be “more like $1 million for a BBJ,” while getting an SDR and installing it should cost only “$70,000 to $75,000” plus a license fee.

Satcom Direct plans to have an aircraft with an SDR and Global VT installed and running at the EBACE show in Geneva next month. Moore said visitors will be able to try the service on their own phones, which will be like roaming but on an aircraft (and the new European standard roaming rates will be applicable).

Improvements for a Connected World

Satcom Direct has been setting up offices around the world at a rapid rate, and in Seattle, São Paulo and Montreal it has offices “embedded with the OEMs (Boeing, Embraer and Bombardier, respectively). It also does a lot of work for the military, for U.S. and NATO members in particular, said Moore. “We realized that we need to be local. We’re just opening up an office in Melbourne, Australia, and Indonesia will be coming on line by the end of [last month].” It also has offices in Hong Kong and Cape Town, among others.

Regardless of the operator’s location, bandwidth is key. Moore said that in the U.S., “the largest market,” demand stems from the corporate segment. In other parts of the world, “people are more privacy-conscious,” but in both cases “we see more and more people retrofitting to put Internet on board. And international markets are catching up with the U.S. rapidly,” he added.

Bantoft said even in the U.S. companies need aircraft with global capabilities, so they are choosing Inmarsat SwiftBroadband services, and they are choosing the same service for their smaller aircraft to ensure the continuity of the user experience “They want to have consistency on all their aircraft,” said Bantoft, who gave the example of a Fortune 500 company with a G650 and a CitationJet. Many also want Iridium as it leads for voice services, while Inmarsat is best for data. However, he denied that Iridium necessarily had less latency and delay in calls. Despite its satellites’ being LEO rather than GEO, Iridium calls all get routed through one point on the planet.

Commenting on what Ka band will offer, Bantoft said: “When Ka comes out the early adopters will take it, for example G650 and BBJ operators. It will take time to filter down to smaller aircraft, mainly because of the cost (including STCs).”

Moore said that despite all this, tracking is top of the agenda at the moment. “It’s a hotbed after MH370,” said Bantoft. “We’ve been tracking [aircraft] for the past 10 years and already have it down to a 10-minute interval,” he added. “Everyone is now waiting for the FAA [and other national authorities] to decide on the requirements.” He noted that the recent NTSB White Paper on the issue had recommended 6 nm or 5 minutes.

Another area where “businesses have been pushing for improvements,” according to Bantoft, is videoconferencing. He said that by the second quarter of this year the company will have the “ability to take up to four streaming SWB connections and put them into one.” This “bonding and aggregation” will combine the 200- to 300-Kb/sec feeds into one “smooth” feed that provides “guaranteed throughput.” He explained that it is not a shared line. “It always maintains a minimum level of service and we will go to 800 Kb/sec and beyond,” he said.